Ethiopia moved Saturday to replace the leadership in the country’s northern Tigray region, where clashes between regional forces and those of the federal government have led to fears that a major African power could slide into civil war. The vote by the upper house of parliament, the House of Federation, to set up an interim administration needs no further approval, and it gives Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed the power to carry out the measures against a Tigray leadership his government regards as illegal. Ethiopia’s federal government said the interim administration will “appoint officials, ensure the respect for rule of law, approve the region’s budget and facilitate the process of conducting elections.”